Australian Market Slightly Higher

(RTTNews) - The Australian stock market is trading slightly higher on Tuesday, extending the gains in the previous session, following the broadly positive cues from Wall Street overnight. The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 is staying above the 8,500 level, with gains in mining stocks and a mixed performance across most sectors.

The benchmark S&P/ASX 200 Index is gaining 2.70 points or 0.03 percent to 8,527.80, after touching a high of 8,572.60 earlier. The broader All Ordinaries Index is up 13.00 points or 0.15 percent to 8,813.40. Australian stocks closed sharply higher on Monday.

Among the major miners, BHP Group and Fortescue are edging up 0.3 to 0.5 percent each, while Rio Tinto is gaining almost 3 percent, while Mineral Resources is flat. Oil stocks are mixed. Woodside Energy is edging down 0.4 percent and Santos is losing almost 1 percent, while Origin Energy and Beach energy are edging up 0.2 to 0.4 percent each.

Among tech stocks, Afterpay owner Block is losing almost 2 percent and WiseTech Global is edging down 0.2 percent, while Zip is advancing 2.5 percent, Appen is gaining more than 3 percent and Xero is edging up 0.3 percent.

Gold miners are mostly higher. Northern Star resources and Evolution Mining is gaining almost 2 percent each, while Newmont is surging almost 5 percent, Resolute Mining is adding almost 4 percent and Genesis Minerals is advancing more than 3 percent.

Among the big four banks, Commonwealth Bank and Westpac are declining more than 1 percent each, while National Australia Bank is losing almost 1 percent. ANZ Banking is edging up 0.1 percent.

In other news, shares in Web Travel are soaring almost 10 percent after reported robust half-year results which met analyst expectations.

Shares in Ramsay Health Care are jumping more than 11 percent as it expects higher earnings this year but warns cost pressures and a challenging operating environment.

Shares in Iress are tumbling almost 6 percent after it dismissed media speculation about a possible acquisition, saying it has "no basis to confirm" reports on potential price or exclusivity terms.

Shares in Bendigo and Adelaide Bank are sliding almost 8 percent after an independent Deloitte investigation found systemic weaknesses in Bendigo Bank's Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing practices.

In the currency market, the Aussie dollar is trading at $0.646 on Tuesday.

On Wall Street, stocks showed an even more substantial move to the upside during trading on Monday following the notable rebound seen during last Friday's session. The tech-heavy Nasdaq showed a particularly strong upward move on the day.

The Nasdaq surged 598.92 points or 2.7 percent to 22,872.01, largely offsetting the steep drop seen last week. The S&P 500 also jumped 102.13 points or 1.6 percent to 6,705.12, while the narrower Dow posted a more modest gain, rising 202.86 points or 0.4 percent to 46,448.27.

Meanwhile, the major European markets turned mixed over the course of the session. While the German DAX Index climbed by 0.6 percent, the U.K.'s FTSE 100 Index edged down by 0.1 percent and the French CAC 40 Index dipped by 0.3 percent.

Crude oil prices surged on Monday, supported by a positive economic outlook and more demand growth. West Texas Intermediate crude for January delivery was up $0.73 or 1.26 percent at $58.79 per barrel.